science

Michael Kitces

Michael Kitces is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Michael Kitces rather than just read about it. In short: Michael Kitces is an American financial planner, commentator, speaker, blogger, and educator. He frequently contributes to industry publications, publishes a blog and newsletter for advisors, is the former practitioner editor of the Journal of Financial Planning, the co-founder of the XY Planning Network (4 times on the Inc. 5000 list at #168 [2018], #553 [2019], #1130 [2020], and #1179 [2021]) and AdvicePay, and is…

Key takeaways

Michael Kitces belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Michael Kitces to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Michael Kitces from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Michael Kitces is an American financial planner, commentator, speaker, blogger, and educator. He frequently contributes to industry publications, publishes a blog and newsletter for advisors, is the former practitioner editor of the Journal of Financial Planning, the co-founder of the XY Planning Network (4 times on the Inc. 5000 list at #168 [2018], #553 [2019], #1130 [2020], and #1179 [2021]) and AdvicePay, and is the Head of Planning Strategy at Buckingham Wealth Partners, a financial advisory firm. He has also been repeatedly featured (from 2017 to 2022) as #1 on Investopedia's "most influential" advisors list.

Biography Kitces was born and raised in the suburbs of Washington, D.C.

Education He earned a Bachelor's in Psychology from Bates College in Maine with a minor in theater, and subsequently earned a Master's in Financial Planning from The American College (Pennsylvania) and a Master's in Taxation from the University of Tulsa. He also holds the CFP®, CLU®, ChFC®, RHU®, REBC®, and CASL® designations.

Career He is the Head of Planning Strategy at Buckingham Wealth Partners. In 2004, Kitces helped to co-found NexGen, a community group for younger financial planners and later went on to co-found the XY Planning Network and AdvicePay as well, with the former being recognized as #168 on the Inc. 5000 list of fastest-growing companies in 2018. For these accomplishments, he was recognized by the Financial Planning Association with a "Heart of Financial Planning" award in 2012, as well as by Investment News as a 40-under-40 to watch in 2014 and an Industry Innovator in 2016. From 2012 to 2015, he served as the Practitioner Editor of the Journal of Financial Planning, after spending many years on its Editorial Review Board. Kitces' research on safe withdrawal rates, asset allocation glidepaths in retirement, and determining sustainable retirement income based on market valuation has been cited by The Wall Street Journal, Money.com, and received an Academic Thought Leadership award from the Retirement Income Industry Association (RIIA) in 2013.

Personal life He lives in Reston, Virginia with his wife and three children.

References

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Michael Kitces

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Michael Kitces claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Michael Kitces before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Michael Kitces ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Michael Kitces

In research: Michael Kitces appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Michael Kitces in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Michael Kitces is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Bates College alumni, Financial advisors, Living people, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Michael Kitces outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Michael Kitces in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Michael Kitces means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Michael Kitces out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Michael Kitces in simple terms?

Why does Michael Kitces matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Michael Kitces?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Michael Kitces.